Snap and Trigger
by kandyfanz123
Summary: AU season 1: Junior Year is not going as planned for the Cohens, the Coopers, Summer, Luke, Anna or Oliver...especially Oliver. He's sick and tired of this, and he's got a gun. He's about to give Harbor School a major shakeup.
1. Dramatis Personae and Prologue

Dramatis Personae:

Ryan Atwood has just moved to Newport Beach as Sandy Cohen and his wife, Kirsten, are his new legal guardians. After befriending the Cohens' son, Seth, and his only friend, Anna Stern, Ryan meets and falls for the next-door-neighbor, Marissa Cooper-- daughter of the wealthiest man in Newport--Jimmy Cooper. According to Summer Roberts, Marissa's best friend, Jimmy Cooper is "the Donald Trump of the West Coast." No wonder Summer is friends with Marissa--she would never want to be friends with Seth Cohen (the comic book geek who is promptly pummeled by Luke Ward, Harbor School's Water Polo Captain, daily).

However, Seth is not Luke's only target. Oliver Trask was Seth's best friend until Oliver confessed his unrequited love for Kirsten, Seth's mother. Of course, Seth never told anyone about that debacle--not even Ryan or Anna--and especially not his parents. He just couldn't handle to be around Oliver anymore, knowing what was really going on when Oliver would stay long enough for Mrs. Cohen to arrive home from work at the Newport Group, Jimmy Cooper's company.

It drove her husband, Sandy, a self-righteous public defender, nuts. He hated that his wife's ex-fiancé had offered her a position as CEO of the company he founded, simply because she had the business degree, whereas Jimmy was the CFO with the degree in finances. The two "friends" had been building up the company together since the Cohens had moved back from Berkeley, going on fifteen years ago. Jimmy had proposed the idea that Real Estate Development would be the up-and-coming industry in Orange County, and this could be a huge financial pay-off. They would never have to worry about living off their parents' mid-ranged salaries from San Francisco, and their children could go to any schools in the country if she could help him. As much as Sandy hated the idea of his wife working with Jimmy, he trusted her, and he knew that he had no argument when Seth's education was about to be financially secure.

As much as Sandy hates that Jimmy Cooper is paying his bills, he knows that Kirsten is doing all of her own work, and he loves his own job. He loved it all the more when he had been able to bring Ryan into their family. Kirsten, of course, always the pragmatist, argued at first that this juvenile delinquent was a hazard to Seth's going to a top school, and Sandy won the argument when he stopped ignoring this elephant in the room: Seth would never go to any school if he killed himself first. Ever since Oliver had stopped coming over (which his son had never effectively communicated why) Seth was depressed.

When Ryan came into the picture, and Seth met Anna Stern, the sweet and sharp pixie-cut blond, the broody-teen issues disappeared with Seth. Suddenly, he was interested in girls, particularly the seventeen-beauty Summer Roberts--Jimmy's daughter Marissa's best friend, and Harbor School social royalty. Summer had coined the term "Ew!" at about age four, and somehow, that jock-strap of a guy, Luke Ward had decided it was the sexiest thing next to porn. Luke and Summer had been dating since the beginning of freshman year.

Marissa, on the other hand, usually hangs in the shadows, quietly receiving academic awards and community service recognition that sets her at the top of her class and makes her a shoe-in for an Ivy League life in two years. Marissa makes sure that her father was watching every step of the way, as she is always trying to make him proud. Being the daughter of the Newport tycoon was never an easy task. Her cheeks were usually achy from smiling, her back tired from the bowing and the scraping.

Her mother, Julie Cooper, the Newport-inbred socialite queen, had taught Marissa well. Jimmy seemed proud enough of Julie with Marissa, though he knew that _he_ and Julie would never have the passion in their marriage that Kirsten and _that_ Sandy Cohen have. Truth be told, he worries about Marissa sometimes. He knows that she probably drinks and parties (she hangs out with Luke and Summer all the time), but she is never happy. What drove him up the wall, however, was when Marissa started dating that delinquent that Sandy Cohen drug home with him. Ignoring Kirsten's constant chides that Ryan, indeed, was a "very bright and compassionate boy," Jimmy only saw the boy as an obstacle to his daughter's Harvard acceptance.

Ryan knew that Marissa's father did not approve of him, and that it drove Marissa crazy--though she would never go out of her way to publicly defy Jimmy. He and Marissa were not scheduled to life happily ever after anytime soon, though, so to Ryan, Marissa was a nice girl that worked too hard for her own good sometimes, and it intrigued him to see her inner workings. He wished she would let him in enough to let him see what made her tick.

Seth could not believe Ryan's outlook on his relationship with Marissa. Why didn't he ever try and sabotage Summer's relationship with Luke when the four went on double dates? Instead, Ryan just wanted to "understand his own girlfriend better, thank you very much." Ryan tried to tell Seth to go for Anna, because she really liked him, to which, of course, Seth was oblivious.

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Prologue:

The bell (which was really a long beep because it was more digital than any bell would ever be) to end second period rang. Seth Cohen was upset enough that it was not regular order schedule today, which gave him just enough time to watch Summer Roberts walk back to her locker before turning left into the E-wing side of the quad to his own locker and then meet up with Anna in the student lounge for a coffee.

On those days, he always passed Ryan between D and E-wing, who was usually visibly exhausted from his pre-calc class with Mr. Schmidt and his mole. Marissa Cooper's lips were normally the only caffeine that would jump start Ryan at 10:00 on a Tuesday morning.

If Marissa Cooper was Summer's best friend, what did Summer do when Marissa was with Ryan? Luke always seemed to be hunting down Seth! The one time Seth followed Summer, after his curiosity got to the best of him, he walked behind her all the way to the girls' lounge. After nearly walking into the hell-with-a-couch, and being effectively trampled by the better part of the water polo squad, Seth hid in the pay phone booth, knowing that no student in their right mind at the Harbor School would ever use a public pay phone.

Today, however, was a Flex-MD order, which meant that there was an assembly of some sort. He believed that Marissa, the social chair, had announced it a few days ago--not that he had listened or anything. This meant that there was only the five-minute passing period between second and third period. No following Summer, no pay phones, no coffee with Anna, and for Ryan, no Marissa caffeine. The con would be after fourth period, he assumed. That was a long time to wait until lunch. His tuna melts would probably be cold.

Fourth period was Western Civ., and Mr. Bendice had them watching _Schindler's List _for the last week of school. Intrigued and depressing at the same time, Seth found this a terribly disturbing film to watch, with his being Jewish and all. When he brought the permission slip home to his parents to allow his viewing of an R-rated movie in class, clapped him on the shoulder, and gave him a hearty look to Seth's uncertain and unexcited look.

_"It'll be good for you, son. It won't be fun, but it'll be good."_

Seth hated watching all of these guards with their machine guns, and the little girl with the red coat tore him apart. He could not understand how someone could cause people to hate one single race that much. It did not make sense to him, and really sent him over the edge was Luke Ward sitting in the corner, snickering and making spit wads to launch at Oliver Trask. As much as Seth hated Oliver--an ironic use of words on his part, Seth decided, giving the context of the scene--he knew that Luke was just a buttbrain that would eventually "get his". Oliver did not seem to think so. Anna sat next to Seth, but she talked too much and it was just one more thing breaking Seth's concentration.

Marissa sat next to the empty seat that was beside Luke, and Ryan on the far side of Marissa. She and Ryan seemed rather engulfed in the movie, Ryan trying to visualize his world without people like the Cohens, and Marissa trying to unvisualize Luke's launching of the spit wads at that Oliver kid. She wished Luke would stop, but Mr. Bendice had already yelled at their table twice for talking. Detention was not worth it to her at this point.

Summer floated back into the room, and Mr. Bendice may have just paused the movie, because no one caught anything that had happened between the clicking of her new red mary-jane Manolos and her patented "Heeeey Coop!" as she stumbled into her seat. Marissa shook her head, wondering if Summer would ever stop with that ridiculous flask at school. At least she was not an angry drunk.

The bell rang eventually, Luke laughed cheerily as he disposed of the last of his spit wads on the back of Oliver's head. Marissa rolled her eyes when Summer gasped at how "funny" her boyfriend was. Quickly exiting, Ryan followed her outside to the hallway as she swung her Chanel bag over her shoulder. Seth saw from inside the classroom that she looked upset. She had to go though, the con would be starting in a few minutes. She would see him later? Oh, yeah. Sure. Ryan was so articulate.

Anna looked incredulously at Seth as he stared fixedly at Ryan.

Summer and Luke had been chatting wildly about what Summer had missed while she was in the bathroom. Luke seemed to have admired the Nazi soldiers and their machine guns as they emptied out the Krakow ghetto in Poland, as he animatedly reenacted their horrible duties.

Seth was still not paying attention to Anna: her spiel about the anathema of Hitler's rallying and propaganda techniques went in one ear and glided out the other.

"Uh-huh…" Seth replied, and he did not really move.

"You okay, Seth?" He snapped out of it.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Anna patted his shoulder absentmindedly.

"C'mon. Let's get good seats for the con."

"Yippee!" he replied sarcastically, as he mechanically clapped his hands together and smiled like a marionette.

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"Welcome, students, faculty, staff, and administrators," Marissa's voice began over the microphone, instantly earning attention from the erratic crowd. "to the End-Of-Fall-Sports assembly. We are very excited to congratulate our Pirate Victors on a tremendous state-winning season in Water Polo, led by the one-and-only captain, Luke Ward!" Marissa stepped down from the potium as Luke emerged from a sea of jocks that cheered and jeered with wolf whistles and yells as their ring leader took the stand.

"Well, I can only describe with one word the thoughts I have over this season, this team, and the generous spirit you guys have provided this season... and that word is 'pride.' Harbor School would not be the same without it, and I can't imagine it any way else. This has been a fantastic season, and I know that we can surely carry on the tradition next year. This pride is something that lasts a few months, only penetrating" the jocks burst into laughter, "through one season." Luke had trouble keeping it together himself. "Harbor is becoming a dynasty, and it is up to you guys, the fans and how much energy and support you all give to this team. Without it, success of this calibur would be impossible. Thank you." Luke gave his patented "Ken Doll" smile and stepped down, shaking hands with the Dean of Students, and then hugging Marissa. The crowd welcomed him back to his place in the bleachers, enveloping their king with a round of slaps on the back.

"Thank you, Luke." Marissa continued after regaining her schoolmates' attention. "Now, with no further ado," she smiled. "I would like to call forward your faculty-chosen junior class representatives who will play in the quarterly spirit con... everybody's favorite: DODGEBALL!" The crowd erupted promptly. Seth did not notice as Oliver rolled his eyes simultaneously. "As I call your name, please step forward to play. For the blue team: Marcy Ross!" A small girl with a nice smile stepped down from the bleachers toward the potium. A teacher ushered her over to a table where she was given a blue t-shirt to fit over her lacoste polo with 'Ross' printed in bold lettering across the shoulderblades. "Leon McMichaels!" Seth clapped for his comic book buddy. "Ryan Atwood." Everyone turned and whispered to their neighbor, asking if they, too, sensed the tension in Marissa's voice as she called her boyfriend's name. "Taylor Townsend" Marissa finished as a girl emerged with tinted pink cheeks. The blue team lined up on the edge of the sport court, all, including Ryan, looking less than enthused for the subsequent occasion.

"Now, for the red team: "Luke!" Apparently the student body needed no last name to figure out which Luke to which Marissa was referring. "Anna Stern." Anna's eyes widened to the size of Jupiter when she realized that they had, in fact, called her name, and that yes, she would have to associate herself with a physical activity in a mini skirt and purple fishnet stockings. "Summer Roberts!" Summer giggled her way over to Luke before refusing to put on the blue team's jersey. Ew. "And finally, Oliver Trask." The crowd whispered again to their neighbors, asking if there actually were such person at Harbor School.

"Okay, now that the rules have been clarified, and our teams are all ready to go, let's get this game on!"

The crowd chanted with various words, depending on the social clique. A countdown from ten signaled before a whistle, and the teams rushed toward the middle of the sport court, diving for the balls. (Everyone, except Anna, of course, who sat down on the endline.) Luke palmed two balls and put another inside his shirt like a pregnant woman. Ryan grabbed a ball and immediately tagged Summer's ankle. She went to the back of the line and sat down by Anna, studying her nails. Luke hit Leon and Taylor with two quick throws, and all who were left were Ryan, Marcy, Luke and Oliver, who stood in the corner. Marcy threw her ball, but Luke caught it, making her out. Ryan picked up a ball that Luke threw his way, egging on the competition. Luke grabbed another ball, and nailed Oliver in the stomach.

"Siddown, queer. This is between Atwood, and me. You're done, faggot." The crowd laughed as Oliver turned bright red and looked as if he were about to charge Luke. Ryan dropped his ball immediately and stepped between the two boys.

"Luke, stop, he's your teammate, man."

"He's no teammate of mine. Queer-ass." Luke slammed the ball into Ryan's stomach before walking out of the gym, a booing crowd left in his wake.

Oliver had never been so humiliated in his life, nor so suddenly! He decided that these kids would never respect him, unless, that is, that they feared him. Even Seth Cohen hated him, and it was not even his fault. Oliver would demand their respect if they would not give it to him. It would be done today, the gun was in his locker.

Harbor School had a major time bomb on it. If someone screwed up, they would all pay. Oliver decided.


	2. The Fall From Digital Grace

So i'm sure you probably reread chapter one to try and rememeber what the story was about before you read this. confession: i did the same thing when i wrote it.

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Sixteen hours prior:

As eight o'clock rolled around, Kirsten Cohen's Jimmy Choo stilettos marched into the foyer of her McMansion home on a hill. Armed with several plastic bags filled with cartons of food, she bellowed through the echoing pillars and up the stairs, "Take out! Thai tonight!" Sandy Cohen emerged through the arched doorway to help his wife, his crazy eyebrows dancing at the thought of trying to lose the kids after dinner for a little quality time with Kirsten. He kissed her in greeting upon an elegantly rouged cheekbone, and relieved her of the plastic bags full of bricks that were their dinner. Kirsten wiped her hands against each other, and after depositing her keys and purse on the granite table underneath the mirror by the door, she followed Sandy to the kitchen.

"How is my little slavedriver today?" Sandy began, knowing his banter would start a fake argument. He needed to test her limits this evening before he could get any hopes up.

"Mmmhh…funny. You're just jealous that I have an entire staff to do my paperwork for me so all I have to do is sign on the dotted line while your sitting in an overly air conditioned office reading nothing _but _paperwork." she retorted with her devil's eye.

"Yeah, and I find it entirely ironic that in our office quest to save paper, we have paper signs up everywhere telling us to reduce our use of paper!" Sandy half-laughed, frustrated. Kirsten rolled her eyes at the stupidity that comes with Newport Beach's false awareness toward the environment.

"Well, at least they _think _they are trying…" Kirsten giggled, reaching for four plates out of the upper cabinet.

"And right out from underneath them, something is going to just collapse into nothingness, and it is going to be traced back to my office. I just know it."

"Well, not everything can be your fault, so just stop trying to take credit for it." Kirsten laughed at her goofy husband. "Grab some silverware, sweetie. No, forks on the left." she corrected as Sandy began to set the table.

"Is Ryan in the poolhouse? I'll go get him. Call Seth please." Kirsten instructed after she had set the four plates on both sides of the six-seating table.

"Wait a sec," Sandy began, causing his wife to turn on her heel with eyebrows raised, welcoming the continuance of his sentence. "come here. I haven't seen you all day long." He put down the rest of the forks and opened his arms to her. Kirsten rolled her eyes, smiling at the simple gesture that was just plain-old-Sandy, and embraced him. Finally relaxing into his shoulder, the tip of her button nose grazed his collar, and she inhaled the traces of his Armani cologne.

"How about… after dinner, you and I lose the kids for awhile, and log a little quality time?" Kirsten looked at him with the glint in her eye that he only knew to mean one thing.

"Go get Seth. Thai's getting cold." she kissed him on the cheek and headed toward the glass bungalow that Ryan inhabited on the opposing corner of the infinity pool, but not before Seth entered through the family room, rolling his eyes and looking disgusted at his parents' state of affection.

"So, Seth, Ryan, how is _Schindler's List _going?" Sandy asked, his eyes darting across the table from one boy to the other after the family was sat down at the dinner table.

"Oh, you know, just fantastic. I'm loving the light humor." Seth replied sarcastically. Kirsten neglected to lift her fork to her mouth as she warned her son with a stern look.

"I didn't think it was going to be _this _depressing." Ryan stated flatly.

"What, the movie, or the fact that nobody in our class has enough decency to watch it quietly?" Seth stated, trying to keep it under his breath, but to no avail.

"It's not my fault. Just ignore them, Seth. If they're going to be like that, there's nothing we can do to stop it that is going to make a difference." Ryan replied.

"And you wonder why your teacher has selected that movie in the first place." Kirsten noted.

"Sorry…" Ryan muttered sheepishly.

"It's okay, son, all she's saying is be aware. Mr. Bendice is watching more than just the film. He's watching your faces, your words, the notes you pass and the spit wads that are spat. He gets that some kids just don't get it… he wants to know that the ones who do, are doing something about it." Sandy explained.

"Yeah, Ryan. Don't be a N.I.M.B.Y. Mom's already a W.A.S.P. We don't need any more acronym-people in this house." Seth joked. Kirsten rolled her eyes.

"I am not a W.A.S.P."

"Oh, mother, you sting me." Seth feigned offense.

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Lunch the following day:

"God, these tuna melts are pathetic. I can't believe I paid--or, well, my _parents_ paid-- for this grotesqueness. Ryan, Marissa's on student council. Please tell her that the tuna melts suck and I expect her to do something about it."

"Seth, quit being an ass." Anna rolled her eyes in a playful manner, pummeling his arm. Seth pretended to have a flesh wound of the triceps, which, in his case, really did not exist. Ryan's eyes tried to tell Seth, for the eighty-seventh time that day that Anna liked him. Seth rolled his eyes right back. His cell phone began to vibrate as the script '_Mom_' read across the exterior screen.

"Hello?" Seth answered in a less-than-pleasant voice.

"Hi, sweetie, I was just calling to let you know that Jimmy and I are at Harbor all afternoon for a board meeting with investors about that new water-polo complex--"

"Why am I not surprised…I'm sure those chest-shaving assholes and their razor-purchasing parents_ would_ have a new water polo complex." Seth interrupted sarcastically.

"Seth, language." His eyes widened, and he mouthed the word "mom" to Ryan across the table.

"Anyway, I was just leaving the office right now for lunch with your father and then I am heading over, was there anything you needed from home this afternoon? Ask Ryan please."

"Dude, do you need anything from home?" Seth asked, covering the speaker of the phone with the palm of his right hand.

"I'm good, thanks."

"We're good, mom, Ryan says thanks. And you really could have left out the part that you and dad were going home for lunch. Gross. Hopefully I won't see you here." Seth flipped the phone shut before his mother could chastise him for assuming such things, even though they both knew them to be true.

"What was that all about?" Ryan asked, confused.

"Oh, you know, my parents are going home to strengthen their sex life before my mom spends the afternoon here negotiating with the Board for a deal to build a new Coliseum for the water-pod people." Ryan just nodded. The digital bell rang again, signaling five minutes before fifth period. Anna, Ryan and Seth left for their classrooms, Seth with a two-hour block of chemistry test to take.

Almost two hours later, Seth was amid his final stoichiometry equation when he heard his mother's voice wafting down the hallway, next to Jimmy Cooper's nervous an-and shaky voice. Seth was not sure if the voice came from nerves of the underway meeting or the fact that he was standing next to Kirsten. Several pairs footsteps followed the two, as Kirsten and Jimmy toured the science wing which lead out to the south end of the school, with a picturesque view of the ocean, of course, only to be contaminated with Luke's water polo complex.

The digital bell rang again, and Seth filled in the "B" bubble on his Scantron form to complete the Christmas tree on his paper. After turning his test in, he hoped to avoid his mother and the band of gaping male Newpsies that followed her when she walked around in those god-awful pencil skirts that drove his dad nuts. He knew no real businessman could resist any contract she offered when wearing those skirts. It made him rather sickened.

Jimmy looked around confused when something echoed.

Marissa was halfway through her locker combination of 39-13-3 when it happened. Her fingers lost track of their simple task.

Summer was blotting her Juicy lip venom in the second story girls' washroom. Somehow, it stung more than usual.

Ryan had stepped in some green bubblegum when he saw a freshman run down the hallway against the normal flow of traffic.

Anna dropped her calculator on her toe when she heard the noise.

Luke was mid-highfive and then found himself on the ground.

Kirsten flinched at the loud bang and dropped the spreasheet she was passing out to an oversized investor.

Seth turned the corner just in time to see it. Glass was everywhere.

Oliver turned around to face Seth, a gun pointed in his direction. Seth felt the urgency and finality of the moment, though Oliver was still a good two-thirds of the hallway away from him.

"Dude, what's all this?" Seth asked, automatically putting his hands up in the air demonstrating no weapons.

"You better than anyone know what this is." Oliver sneered at him riling Seth's heartbeat into a vicious palpitation.

"I do?" His voice cracked a little. Amidst the mixture of open and closed lockers, strewn books and backpacks, and garbage through the deserted hallway, all was still until something moved in the corner. Luke cradled his knee a mess of bloody pain. Seth had no idea what was going on. He heard pleasant noise that was associated with passing periods, presumably from the other corners of campus. One shot of panic was not enough to send the entire school into panic mode within seconds.

"Attention!" The dean's voice proclaimed gravely over the public address. "This is a code red. Lockdown protocol is in effect. This is not a drill." Seth did not even try to move, knowing that somehow, the lockdown protocol did not apply to him at the moment.

"Oliver, please. Put the gun down, man. Let's talk." Seth tried again, knowing that Luke needed help; unable to reach him at the moment, Seth would try again to persuade the gunsman.

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Marissa dropped her bag when she heard the bang and shuffled into the nearest classroom, Room F212. Her cell phone, luckily, was still in her pocket. Anna sat down beside her a moment later, taking one of Marissa's shaking hands.

A young freshman flew into the bathroom and told Summer to hide in a stall with her. Based on the poor girl's tears, Summer readily complied.

Kirsten and Jimmy shuffled the investors into a classroom. Kirsten mentally kicked herself for prohibiting the investors, Jimmy, and herself a phone when they left the conference room. She had not seen Seth or Ryan.

Ryan could not run without leaving a trail or squeaking due to the gum. He tried several locked janitor's closets before finally going into the girls' restroom on the second floor. He searched his pockets for his phone, and was relieved when he saw a new text from Marissa: _I'm safe. Tell me you're ok... Don't say where you are. I love you. Who has the gun?_ Someone had a gun? What the hell? Ryan remembered Jimmy and Kirsten were here for the afternoon. If anything had happened to her or Seth, Ryan would make sure there would be hell to pay for whoever was behind this.

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Ok, so i know its shortish, but hopefully climactic enough for you to keep reading... and reviewing! i might even update this time.


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